Peter's Blog

Even as the Fed cuts interest rates, and signals that more rate cuts on the way, consumer credit card interest rates are hitting all-time highs. A Bankrate report said that the average retail credit card interest rate reached a whopping 30.45 percent earlier this year, up from 2021’s average of 14.35 percent. 

Mainstream economists dismiss Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) as outlandish and absurd, yet ironically, they share core beliefs which are frighteningly similar. MMT is now showing up everywhere in mainstream economic views, and this could spell disaster for the economy.

The US national debt is so out of control that, ironically enough, even the Federal Reserve chair has expressed concern about the problem. And while America is among the top contributors, it isn’t just the US that’s spending money it doesn’t have: after briefly declining in 2023, the global debt-to-GDP ratio is again at an all-time high.

Ron Paul’s recent op-ed from the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity, reprinted in the Orange County Register, breaks down the profound damage caused by central bank money printing: it pits savers against speculators, encouraging consumers to use debt to fund basic needs since their savings are constantly evaporating due to monetary debasement.

With consumer debt reaching record levels, the Federal Reserve contemplating rate cuts in 2024, and post-Covid inflation still yet to reach its peak, a storm is indeed brewing.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently released two inflation reports highlighting inflation figures for December 2023. Here’s what they showed: 

The “resilient” American consumer seems to be running out of gas. Americans are still running up credit card debt but at a much slower pace. Meanwhile, borrowing for big-ticket items has cratered. Total consumer debt rose by $5.2 billion in October, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve. That was a relatively small […]

Holiday shoppers plan on cutting back on spending and piling on even more debt this year, and nearly a quarter of Americans still haven’t paid off their debt from last year’s holiday spending spree. These were just a few revelations in a recent WalletHub survey that indicates American consumers aren’t quite as “resilient” as pundits […]

Mainstream pundits and government officials keep talking about the strong economy and resilient consumers while ignoring what’s driving them – borrowing. To listen to them, you would think the road to prosperity is paved with credit cards. In this episode of the Friday Gold Wrap host Mike Maharrey breaks down the recent household debt data […]

Mainstream financial network pundits and government officials keep telling us that the economy is chugging along because Americans continue to spend money. But it’s clear that borrowing is the only thing sustaining this spending spree. Meanwhile, the “resilient” American consumer is drowning under a surging tidal wave of debt.